Mabouba
Her dress whipped around her frail legs as she climbed the gangway, her ascent slow and labored. That day, no one had any idea what Mabouba had been through for the last six years, nor how close her brush with death was yet to be.
“It was in 2010 that it started,” the 23-year-old recalls. Mabouba was finishing up her junior year of high school with plans to become a midwife. Then the tumor appeared, and everything changed. For the next six years, Mabouba remained at home, staying with her elder brother in Togo while the rest of her family lived abroad in Switzerland.
By 2014, her tumor had grown so much that it began to block Mabouba’s esophagus and windpipe.
“It had become very hard for her to eat, even to breathe,” recalls her Uncle Yousef, shaking his head. “Even in the night you could hear – she was drawing air with great difficulty.” Unable to swallow more than little bits of rice, eggs and torn-up morsels of bread, the young woman began to starve.
All the while though, Mabouba’s father was searching for help and trying to bring his daughter to Switzerland for treatment. “He did everything,” she recalls. “Nationality card, passport, everything. But, because of my condition, the visa application process continued to drag.”
The family scrambled for another solution. Uncles, grandparents and cousins gathered what money they could and sent Mabouba to Ghana for surgery.
But there, calamity struck. “The doctors said they had to remove some teeth before they could remove her tumor,” recalls her Uncle Yousef. “But something went wrong, and she was bleeding, bleeding, bleeding everywhere.” He looks down as he recalls this. “She almost died.”
With the precious money gone and her health in shards, Mabouba returned home. “Those days my mind was preoccupied with the tumor,” she recounts. “I could think of little else.”
In January 2016 Mabouba’s father came to Togo to see her. Shocked by her condition, he contacted the Swiss Mercy Ships office and found out that the floating hospital would be coming back to Benin that very August… and, yes, Mabouba would be seen.
But as January turned to April and April to July, Mabouba’s clothes hung more and more loosely off her body.
Finally, on September 17th, 2016, the young woman arrived at the hospital ship and slowly lifted her feather-light frame up the gangway.
“When I finally stepped onboard, I felt immediately different.” she recounts. This moment had been six years coming. “I said to myself then, ‘I’m already healed.’”
But the trial wasn’t over. Tests revealed that the tumor would soon starve her to death, and it would be extraordinarily difficult to remove. “I took courage, though,” recalls Mabouba. “It was their kindness … I had confidence in God and in the team too.”
The morning of surgery, the operating team gathered around Mabouba to pray before the surgery began. Over the loudspeaker, the entire Africa Mercy crew was asked to intercede for an unnamed patient undergoing a difficult surgery.
For nine long hours, there was prayer all over the ship.
As evening approached, Mabouba was finally wheeled out of the operating theater. Miracle of all miracles, her tumor was gone.
“I remember when I woke up – I was transformed. I was a new person,” Mabouba recalls, wiping tears from her eyes. “You have saved my life, and I don’t know how to thank you. But God says when you care for your neighbor, heaven will be guaranteed for you. So I wish you heaven.”
Written by: Anna Psiaki, Africa Mercy Writer
Mercy Ships Welcomes Presidential Visit on board, in Toamasina Harbor
Presidential Visit: Malagasy president His Excellency Andry Nirina Rajoelina visited patients and volunteers on board Mercy Ships’ hospital vessel to see for himself the lives being transformed.
Day of the Seafarer: One Maritime Volunteer’s Story
On this Day of the Seafarer, Mercy Ships wants to honor all the people like Ishaka, volunteer assistant bosun on board the Global Mercy.
An Electrician’s Journey to Finding Purpose and Professional Growth
When Jean Jacques Diouf came on board for the 1st time, he’d packed his suitcase with enough supplies for one week. Learn more about his professional growth!
THE MSC FOUNDATION, THE MSC GROUP AND MERCY SHIPS INTERNATIONAL JOIN FORCES TO BUILD A NEW HOSPITAL SHIP
The new purpose-built hospital ship will expand the impact of Mercy Ships’ life-changing surgeries, anaesthetic care and surgical education for future generations of patients and healthcare professionals in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Woman Who Forged Her Way Through Walls: Florence Bangura’s Story
Florence’s journey from oldest to newest Mercy Ship came full circle when she met the Global Mercy™ in 2023, the same year that the purpose-built hospital ship began welcoming its patients on board. Today, you can find Florence, now 49 years old, down in the engine room as a hotel engineering assistant.
Transforming Sierra Leone’s Healthcare: A Vision for Safe and Affordable Surgery
As experts from the surgical and healthcare world gather for the 64th Annual Conference and Scientific Meeting of the West African College of Surgeons in Sierra Leone this week, a profound dedication to advancing surgical knowledge and practice in the region is palpable. At the forefront of discussions lies the conference’s pivotal theme: access to safe and affordable surgical and anesthetic care in West Africa. This theme highlights the pressing need to address disparities in healthcare capabilities and capacities across the region, especially the critical importance of equitable access to quality surgical interventions.
Share
Related Posts
Madagascar Welcomes Mercy Ships for Next Field Service in 2024
Following a series of recent meetings between the Ministry of Health and Mercy Ships, the Africa Mercy has officially been welcomed to return to Madagascar for her next field service. The hospital ship is planned to initially dock in the port of Toamasina in February 2024.
Day of the Seafarer: One Maritime Volunteer’s Story
On this Day of the Seafarer, Mercy Ships wants to honor all the people like Ishaka, volunteer assistant bosun on board the Global Mercy.
Creating New Connections: Mercy Ships Canada and the Francophone Nursing Community
Find out how Mercy Ships Canada is getting involved with the French speaking nursing community.
Face-to-Face after Decades: Catherine and Aly Reunite on the Global Mercy
The last time Catherine Conteh saw the deeply familiar smile in front of her in Freetown, it was under dramatically different circumstances. Learn more about Aly’s act of kindness!
Mercy Ships Welcomes Presidential Visit on board, in Toamasina Harbor
Presidential Visit: Malagasy president His Excellency Andry Nirina Rajoelina visited patients and volunteers on board Mercy Ships’ hospital vessel to see for himself the lives being transformed.
A Young Leader’s Philanthropic Inspiration
Discover how a young girl inspires others by making a generous donation to Mercy Ships Canada